I Need Advise-broody!!! Help!

Redsquirrel

Songster
10 Years
Mar 24, 2009
245
2
121
Burnsville, Minnesota
I have a persistent broody that just will not stop. She has no eggs and never did. I take her off her nest and make it so that she cannot go back there until bedtime with all the other chickens. But I just can't seem to break her off the broodiness.
She is about 9 1/2 months old - Cochin. She starting laying eggs at 8 months for about 1 week then went broody. I feel bad for her but I really don't want her hatching out any eggs this late in the season. But I am afraid she will go on forever like this and her health is a concern too.
Please give me your advise-thanks
 
1. Strong instinct in this breed to brood
2. Don't worry about her health, they will not starve or dehydrate themselves, they will always get off the nest at least once a day to do the above.
3. The best way I have found to break broodiness is to put her in a wire bottom cage elevated off the floor. Obviously provide food and water and leave her in the cage until she "snaps" out of it.
4. If you can't do the wire cage thing do not let her back in the nest box at night make her roost with the other chickens, although I don't have much luck with this. My broodies as soon as I lower the folded up perches they fly from the roost to the nest boxes to get into the boxes.
5. Do nothing.
 
Last edited:
Oh my, Cochins are really persistent brooders. When one of my cochins goes broody, all of her sisters then join her on the nest and I have three or four hens sitting on one nest! Its crazy! My cochins were sitting on a communal nest and kept kicking the other hens eggs out of the nest. They hatched only one chick of their own and were so persistent to sit on that nest that they wouldn't get off the nest with the new chick! So the new chick left the nest on her own and joined another hen and her chicks! She was adopted by the other hen since the cochins wouldn't get off the nest! Then they did hatch one more egg, not their own egg however, and that chick they killed! I'm not particularly fond of the cochins anymore after that. They finally did break their broody streak, without any chicks. It took about two months though. If they do it again, I will do everything in my power to keep them off the nest. If I have to lock them outside in the enclosed yard I will. I would even put them in a cage for a few days if I have to. I will not let those hens try to hatch anymore chicks since the killing episode! I'd give them away first! Don't feel bad for her, just do whatever it takes to break her broodiness, she'll get over it. If you do decide to let her sit, make sure that she has her own eggs to sit on. Cochins seem to discriminate against the egg, not the chick so much. If they are sitting on an egg that is a different size or color than their own, they will kill the chick. You don't want to go through that. If she's not laying, then she won't have any eggs of her own anyway, so I think you should cage her up, keep her off the nest, do whatever it takes. If she doesn't have any eggs to sit on, she'll snap out of it eventually, it could just take a long time! Good luck!
 
Last edited:
Well i decided to put her in an big parrot cage I have-wire bottom, water and food -a perch. I had to put her in the garage because she was going crazy seeing the coop but not being able to get out to it. Poor thing. She clucked for quite a while and her sister, outside too-looking for her. (her buddy). I went out for a while and now I am back and they have calmed down, thank goodness. It feels like I have put her in jail but it's the only thing I can think of to do. And seems other people have had success with it. So I will try it for a few days. Yeah I don't know what she would be like hatching out chicks-her sister would be in there too. Don't really want to risk it unless I have to.
Thanks for all your advise!
smile.png
 
Last edited:
She will be just fine if she never hatches a chick in her life. She is only reacting to hormones and mother nature. She honestly doesn't know why she is doing what's she's doing.
 
She'll be fine. Sounds like you're doing the best thing. I will never againg let my cochins try and hatch any chicks, and I don't feel one bit bad about it. After finding a severely pecked chick clinging onto life, then trying to save it and failing, I don't feel bad for them at all. They are lucky they didn't end up in the stew pot! None of my other hens have ever reacted that way to other chicks.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom